Internal combustion engine



y 4, 1965 N. o. ZURICH 3,181,515

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Oct. 3, 1965 V INVENTOR.

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United States Patent 3,181,515 INTERVAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Nikola 0. Zurich, Royal Hotel, 435 W. Michigan, Milwaukee, Wis. Filed Oct. 3, 1963, Ser. No. 313,676 12 Claims. (Cl. 123-41.65)

This invention relates to an internal combustion engine.

The engine has radial cylinders encircled by a cam ring which rotates concentrically with the crankshaft and either operates directly upon the valve stems or acts directly on the rocker arms which actuate such stems. In either case, the cam shaft as such and the push rods of a conventional valve in the head engine are dispensed with.

The ring also may control timing by provision of a brush which moves across successive spark plugs either in direct contact therewith or in closely spaced spark gap relation thereto for determining the plug to which a given spark impulse will be delivered from the spark coil and breaker (not shown). Such an arrangement dispenses with any other form of distributor.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in end elevation of an engine embodying the invention, portions of the crankcase and two of the cylinders being broken away.

FIG. 2 is a view taken in section on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing an engine with a single crank.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary detail view taken on a section like of FIG. 3 and showing a modified embodiment using a rocker arm.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary detail view similar to FIG. 4 showing a modified embodiment of the invention.

In the engine shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a crankshaft 6 has two cranks each of which has two connecting rods 8 and 10 connected to pistons such as those shown at 12 and 14 in the respective cylinders 16 and 18. The crankcase 20 is provided with bearings at 22 and 24. The shaft is extended and provided with a bearing at 26 in the fixed support bracket 28 and it also supports for independent rotation the hub 30 of the cam ring 32. Another support at 34 may be connected directly with the crankcase 20.

As shown, the engine includes not only the cylinders 16 and 18 above referred to but also the cylinders 36 and 38, all mounted on the crankcase 20 and encircled by the cam ring 32.

Although the cylinders 36 and 38 are offset axially from the cylinders 16 and 18, the several cylinders all have spark plugs 49 in the same plane normal to the crankshaft axis. On the other periphery of the cam ring 32, there is a brush 42 which, without necessarily contacting any of the plugs comes sufiiciently close to the terminals 44 thereof to be able to deliver current to a given plug at the appropriate time for firing. A wire 46 leads from the commutator ring 48 on the hub 30 of the cam ring 32. Riding on the commutator ring 48 is a brush 50 which derives current from any appropriate source such as the usual spark coil and breaker (not shown). The cam ring is driven in properly timed relationship to the crankshaft 6 by means of planetary reduction gearing at 52 (FIG. 2) having bearing support at 54 from the crankcase and searching to transmit motion from a driving gear 56 on the crankshaft to a ring gear 58 connected with hub 30' of the cam ring 32.

Cams are provided in the inner periphery of the cam ring 32 for operating the intake and exhaust valves of each of the several cylinders. Thus the cams 60 and 62 coact with the cam followers 64 and 66 of the stems 3,l8l,5l5 Patented May 4, 1965 of the intake valve 68 and the exhaust valve 70 respectively of cylinder 16. Similar cams '72 and 74 are provided for the cam follower rollers 76 and 78 of the intake valve 89 and hub valve 82 of cylinder 13.

The same is true of the earns 84, 86, 88 and 90 provided for the valves of the axially offset cylinders 36 and 38. The manifolding has nothing to do with the present invention but I have diagrammatically illustrated the carburetor 92 and intake manifold 94 and an exhaust manifold 96.

FIG. 3 diagrammatically shows the application of the invention to a two-cycle engine in which the crankshaft 600 requires but a single crank.

FIG. 4 diagrammatically illustrates the provision of cams and 102 on the exterior of the cam ring 320 for actuating rocker arms such as that shown at 104 for the displacement of the valve stem 106.

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 4 illustrating the fact that the invention is also applicable to fuel injection engines, the rocker arm 11%? 'being actuated by cam 112 to displace the plunger 114 of a fuel injection pump 116 supplied with fuel through the conduit 1-18. In such engines, the timing eifected by the ring 322 concerns the precise point in the engine cycle at which the fuel injection will occur, rather than the timing of the ignition spark. Frequently such engine is made to operate on the diesel principle and hence requires no spark plug.

In the disclosed arrangement in which the cam ring 32 (or 320 or 322) rotates around the engine cylinders, it is possible to design the supporting spokes with flanges or other oblique surfaces at 120 which function as fan blades to circulate cooling air over the fins 122 of the cylinders 36, 38.

It will be apparent that regardless of the number of cylinders, the present invention makes it possible to eliminate the conventional cam shaft and push rods by mounting the timing and valve-operaing cams on a ring which encircles the cylinder or cylinders having valves or timed means such as a spark plug or fuel injector to be operated. Obviously, the rate of rotation of the timing ring with respect to the crankshaft of the engine can be varied as desired according to Whether the engine is a two-cycle or four-cycle engine.

I claim:

1 An engine, comprising the combination with a crankshaft, a relatively fixed cylinder, 2. piston reciprocable in the cylinder and connected with the crankshaft and means supported on the cylinder requiring operation in timed relation to the movement of the piston, of a ring encircling the crankshaft and the cylinder, means supporting the ring for rotation, means for driving the ring rotatably from the crankshaft and a cam on the ring for actuating the cylinder-supported means.

2. An engine according to claim 1 in which the cylindersupported means comprises a valve having cam follower means operated by said cam for the actuation of the valve.

3. An engine according to claim 1 in which the cylinder-supported means comprises a spark plug, the cam being electrically insulated, and means for conducting ignition current to the cam for delivery therefrom to the spark plug at a time in the movement of said piston which is determined by the position of said cam and said ring.

4. An engine according to claim 1 in which a rocker arm mounted on the cylinder intervenes between the cam and the cylinder-supported means actuated therefrom- 5. An engine according to claim 1 in which the cylinder-supported means comprises a fuel injector pump having a plunger, and cam follower means in the path of the cam and connected with the plunger for displacement thereof.

6. An engine according to claim 1 in which the cylinder has cooling flanges and the ring has supporting spokes provided with air-propelling surfaces for moving ai against the cylinder flanges.

7. An engine comprising the combination with a crankcase, a crankshaft .rotatably mounted in the crankcase and provided with cranks, engine cylinders mounted on the crankcase and having pistons reciprocable therein, connecting rods engaged with the cranks and connected with the pistons for controlling piston reciprocation in the cylinder, of a ring encircling the several cylinders and having a hub portion coaxial with the crankshaft and supporting the ring for rotation about the crankshaft axis, means drivingly connecting the crankshaft with said hub for rotating the ring around the cylinders, cam means mounted on the ring, and fuel inlet and exhaust valves mounted on the respective cylinders, the cylinders having ports controlled by said valves, and the respective valves having earn follower actuating means operatively disposed in the path of the cam means of said ring.

8. An engine according to claim 7 in which the means drivahly connecting the crankshaft with said hub include rate reducing gearing for actuating the hub and ring at one-half crankshaft speed. 7

9. An engine according to claim 7 in which certain of said cylinders are offset axially of the crankshaft from other of said cylinders and have their respective pistons and connecting rods actuated from different cranks with which the crankshaft is provided, said ring having separate cam means for operating the valves of the cylinders so offset.

10. In an engine, the combination with a crankcase and a crankshaft rotatably mounted therein provided with a crank, cylinders mounted on the crankcase, a rotor having portions movable on a path encircling the cylinders and provided with a hub substantially coaxial with the crank shaft and rotatable about said axis, means connecting the hub to receive motion from the crankshaft to operate said rotor, pistons reciprocable in the respective cylinders and having connecting rods connected with the crankshaft, and means for timing the initiation of an expansion stroke of the respective pistons in their respective cylinders, said means having 'cam followers and said rotor having cam means for engaging the respective cam followers and for thereby timing the operation of said timing means in the course of rotation of said rotor.

11. An engine according to claim 10 in which the timing'means comprises spark plugs and the cam means comprise current-carrying cams for transmitting the ignition current to the respective plugs in properly timed relation to piston movement in the respective cylinders, the said hub having commutator means for supplying current to said cams. p

12. An engine according to claim 10 in which the timing means comprises injection pumps mounted on the respective cylinders and having plungers provided with cam followers engaged by said cam means for engine operation.

References Qited By the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,574,244 2/26 Goldsmith 123 44 ,912,507 6/33 Wodlson 123' 55 2,630,105 11/53 Hasbrouck 123-55 2,963,705 12/60 Beaven. 3,003,308 10/61 Beaven 123 44 RICHARD B. WILKINSON, Primary Examiner.

KARL J ALBRECHT, Examiner. 

1. AN ENGINE, COMPRISING THE COMBINATION WITH A CRANKSHAFT, A RELATIVELY FIXED CYLINDER, A PISTON RECIPROCABLE IN THE CYLINDER AND CONNECTED WITH THE CRANKSHAFT AND MEANS SUPPORTED ON THE CYLINDER REQUIRING OPERATION IN TIMED RELATION TO THE MOVEMENT OF THE PISTON, OF A RING ENCIRCLING THE CRANKSHAFT AND THE CYLINDER, MEANS SUPPORTING THE RING FOR ROTATION, MEANS FOR DRIVING THE RING ROTATABLY FROM THE CRANKSHAFT AND A CAM ON THE RING FOR ACTUATING THE CYLINDER-SUPPORTED MEANS. 